Not for the first time whilst exploring the tinier lanes of the Cotswolds we have stumbled upon a beautiful little settlement that I, for one, had never to my knowledge, heard about. Clapton-on-the-Hill is a minute hamlet sitting on the hilltop just above Bourton on the Water, with incredible views of the surrounding countryside.

It’s only a few miles from North Leach and the A40, and it is on the Monarch’s Way, a 625-mile footpath that follows, as far as possible, the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated at the Battle of Worcester. It runs from Worcester via Bristol and Yeovil to Shoreham, West Sussex. We last touched on this walking route in Hampnett, just above North Leach, a few miles south of here.

This gives a hint as to the best way to visit this little village. On foot.

There is nowhere really to stop a car, and it’s quite difficult even to turn round once you are there. But don’t be put off. The views are great and the little church of St James has a peaceful contemplative feel about it that certainly calms the soul.

One way properly to experience the peace and quiet of this village might be to stay in the B&B in Clapton Manor, just next to the church. Now we haven’t stayed here ourselves but we have read the reviews and I have spoken at length to the lovely lady who runs it, and it’s very hard to think of a more peaceful place to base yourself for a visit to the Cotswolds. (She has suggested incidentally, that it would have been surly of Charles the second not to have stopped for a glass of mead as he passed in 1651, and that therefore he probably did, which seems reasonable to me.)